Vietnamese pharmaceutical regulators and producers are taking proactive steps in preparing for the challenges that will arise when the country joins the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

The WTO membership will kickstart the implementation of a tax reduction roadmap for pharmaceutical and cosmetic products, give foreign businesses the right to open their branches in Viet Nam and allow foreign-invested enterprises to directly import and export medicines, Health Minister Tran Thi Trung Chien said, adding that this will pose difficulties to those local firms that lag behind in applying Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) standards.

Therefore, local pharmaceutical producers must accelerate the application of GMP regulations in order to have them fully in place at their factories by 2010, said the Minister.

On their part, distributors have been strengthening their linkage and applying the ISO 9001: 2000 quality management standards to prepare for fierce competition from foreign distributing companies.

The Health Ministry said it will join hands in planning and developing distribution networks to ensure that all people can have access to quality medicines with reasonable prices.

The government is also working hard to improve management of the industry to catch up with the international and regional process, according to Cao Minh Quang, Head of the Viet Nam Pharmacy Management Department.

He said that related legal documents are being revised to comply with international standards while the management mechanism has been strengthened step by step in order to better the inspection of product quality and post-sales activities.

In regard to this area, on Sept. 30 the Health Minister signed a decision to promulgate regulations concerning the protection of secrecy of product registrations, an issue of great concern with trans-national pharmaceutical manufacturers.

(Source: Vn Agency)